


Upscale

by thisisnttheend



Category: Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Genre: M/M, jalph - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-20
Updated: 2017-04-07
Packaged: 2018-09-18 17:27:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,007
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9395687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisisnttheend/pseuds/thisisnttheend
Summary: richboy!jack popular!ralphORthe one were jack has a rough home life and tries to get everyone to do what he wants by paying them off.





	1. Introduction

Jack Merridew had a terrible habit of getting everything that he wanted in life. When he walked down the hallway, everyone turned to look at him. Everyone wanted to be his friend. His best friend Roger was an average boy with dark black hair that fell into his eyes and a knack for doing whatever Jack asked him to do for just a couple bucks.

They had last hour math together, and neither of them paid any attention. Roger spent his time stabbing erasers with his pencil. Jack, on the other hand, wasn’t too worried. He’d staple some cash to his math test and get on with his life. People would do anything for the right amount and the redhead knew it.

That’s why when Jack found himself day after day staring at the little blond boy in the corner of the room, he opened his wallet and asked Roger to intervene. The shorter boy’s eyes widened, and he nodded, eager to do as he asked of him. He needed the cash.

Jack adjusted himself on top of a desk and watched. He really wasn’t worried, as he was never turned down. When Roger turned back toward him, faintly shaking his head, Jack raised an eyebrow. “He said no matter how much you give him, he’s not going to take it,” he explained, “his name is Ralph.” The redhead rolled his eyes in frustration. Of course he knew who Ralph was.

Everyone knew Ralph’s name. He grew up in a middle-class family with parents that still loved each other, which Jack would have killed for. He was the star player on the school football team, and everyone wanted to be his friend because they actually enjoyed his personality. He was confident and strong, and he used it to his advantage. Girls lined up from a million miles away, still hoping to have a chance even though he had made it clear that they weren’t something he had interested in. Ralph was a star.

Jack knew that he would have to think of a new idea, but he didn’t want to put the work into it. He had simply expected Ralph to fall right into his arms from his offer. He tapped a pen on his notebook, rolling his eyes when he shoved it in his backpack and walked down the hall to choir. 

Ralph hated saying no, especially to the one thing that he wanted since the beginning of the school year. When he walked into the door on the first day, he noticed how Jack Merridew caught his eye. He would look at him every few moments, making sure that they would never make eye contact. 

As much as he wanted to say yes to Jack, the blond knew what he would have to do to get his attention, and neither of them were going to like it. 


	2. 2

Ralph liked to think of it as a game. Every time he’d do something to make Jack jealous, it would be a certain number of points. 10 points to talk to another boy, 20 if it was Roger. Half of him hated to do this. He wanted Jack so badly. Something in the back of his mind told him that this is what he would have to do to get Jack to take him seriously. The redhead got everything that he has ever wanted throughout his life, but he was not going to get Ralph. Not without a fight.

The blond was extremely personable, but flirting didn’t exactly come naturally to him. This didn’t stop him from doing it. He walked up to Roger’s desk, pulling up a chair, and resting his elbows on the table. The blond rested his chin on his hand and stared at him with big blue eyes. “Hi, Roger,” he said smoothly, licking his lips. He examined the other with a sigh. Roger was okay looking, he supposed. It resonated with him for a moment that it could be wrong what he was doing. He wasn’t interested in Roger in the least, and Ralph was fairly certain that one of his friends had a crush on him.

Roger was confused with the attention, but he didn’t let it show. He watched the blond with a straight face, raising an eyebrow and brushing the wisps of his dark hair from his eyes. Ralph tried his best to suppress his uneasiness. “I was wondering if maybe you'd like to go out with me sometime,” he grinned, revealing his bright white teeth. Roger inhaled, his whole body moving from his breath.

“You know that Jack Merridew wants you, right?” he questioned. He tapped the end of his pencil on the desk. Ralph froze momentarily before giving him a nod. “Then I’m going to have to say no, golden boy. You’re not my type.” The dark haired boy smiled as if he knew something that the other didn’t Ralph’s cheeks flushed at the name, but as he walked back to his desk, he reminded himself that he still had almost five hundred points this week.

Jack had been sitting at his desk in the back row. In the beginning of the year, he had chosen a seat diagonally placed from Roger in order to create the easiest conversation, he explained. As Ralph spoke to the boy for what seemed to be the hundredth time just this week, the redhead could feel his face heating up from behind his freckles. He stood up, slamming his hand down on Roger’s desk. “What the fuck are you doing?” he exclaimed, narrowing his eyes.

Roger shoved his hands off of his desk. “Chill,” he huffed. “I’ve told him that you’re into him. I’ve turned him down, what else do you want me to do? He’s obviously trying to play hard to get. He’s not worth the time that he takes.”

The taller boy glanced over at Raph, who was getting all of his football things ready for after the bell rang. He licked his lips. AN idea was coming to his mind, and a lightbulb went off. “I’m going to the game tonight,” he murmured. Roger looked over as well.

“You’re so whipped,” he sighed, shaking his head. Jack glared and knocked all of Roger’s books off his desk before walking away. He rolled his eyes as he shoved everything into his backpack and walking out of the classroom before the bell ran. He knew that the teachers wouldn’t even bother to try and stop him.


	3. 3

Jack jammed his house key into the lock to get into his house. It was large and made of brick, and when he entered, he could always hear the echo of his footsteps. He knew that no one was home, so he didn’t even bother to call out to his family. Instead, he called out to himself. The redhead let out a loud cry in anger and pain as he knocked a glass of water off of the kitchen counter.

He rolled his deep blue eyes and stormed up the stairs, throwing his backpack onto the floor. “Screw you,” He grumbled as he went up to his room. It was large but very empty except for his choir awards hanging on the wall. There were plenty of medals and certificates that he had won hung up in his room. His mother never put them on the fridge when he was younger, so he decided to dedicate a shrine to himself.

It filled him with pride to tell himself that he had won those awards himself, with no help from his parent’s money or any other deciding factors. Jack had won those awards because he truly was the best boy in his choir. Choir was one of the few things that gave him a glimmer of hope for the future. His grades would be screwed if he didn’t buy his way out of them all, and he had no other talents. He was sick of being alone, so over the summer he had gone to choir camp, and nothing had made him happier.

He felt like he was truly a part of something. When he returned, he was just the rich boy who bought everything he wanted. The boy didn’t mind, truly, but it was nice to be someone else for just a while. Though, he’d never admit it even to himself that he would ever want to be anyone but Jack Merridew.

The tall boy went into the bathroom and searched for some face paint. He popped it open and looked in the mirror, dragging his fingers through the red and white and then along his cheeks, forehead, and chin. Jack never did anything halfway, and he knew it.

He pulled on his school  shirt and looked in the mirror, fluffling up his fiery curls. His freckles were no longer visible, but the orange and reds contrasted with his bright eyes, and he grinned at his reflection. Ralph couldn’t say no to someone like him. He chewed on his lower lip as he grabbed his wallet off of the table and everything else that he would need before running outside. 

Jack got into his car and took another glance at his reflection in the mirror. As he held his cellphone to his ear, he pulled out of the driveway. “Roger, are you in, or are you out?” He snapped when the ringing in his ear stopped.

“You’re on your own, loverboy,” The voice said through half of a laugh. Jack groaned, feeling as if he was almost ready to choke his best friend already.

“Screw you,” he rolled his eyes. The call ended, and he threw his phone into the passenger seat. 

-

Ralph grabbed all of his football items and shoved them back into his bag. He scrunched up his nose at the smell, zipping it up quickly. His mother had just washed his uniform, but the smell of his shoes made the whole bag seem rancid. He tried to ignore it as he picked up one of his picture frames on his nightstand.

He traced it with his fingertips for a moment, admiring the memories and allowing nostalgia to flood through him. “It’s okay,” he told himself as he tossed it in the trash. “It’s okay.” The blond chewed on his lower lip in anxiousness. His mother always told him that he needed to get tested because the amount of nerves he felt at all times of the day didn’t seem healthy. He tried to ignore it.

The boy ran down the hallway, sliding down the wood floor and laughing to himself. His mother rolled her eyes. “Mum, I’m heading out,” he called as he grabbed his keys off the counter. 

“I love you,” she replied, handing him his filled water bottle. “I’m sorry that I can’t come, I feel really guilty. I’ve never missed one.” Ralph shook his head.

“It’s okay, don’t worry. Love you,” He replied quickly before his kissed her cheek. The boy smiled faintly and shook his head again before heading out the door.

He got into his car. It wasn’t the most beautiful, but it made him happy. His parents bought it was good intentions.

The blond drove down the street and out to the field. It was one of the few things that relieved his anxiety. The wind blew through his hair, and his cleats stuck into the lush greenery as he walked. The game would soon begin, and he would be happier than he had ever been.

When the game started, and he looked out into the crowd where his mother usually sad, he was surprised that it was accompanied. Everyone who had ever been to a game knew better to sit in Ralph’s mother’s reserved area. It was a tradition of theirs, something that they did for their star player.

He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things, but there in his mum’s seat was the one and only Jack Merridew. The blond stood there in awe. Suddenly he heard a sharp whistle.


End file.
